THE reopening of a historic pub bought by a co-founder of fashion label Superdry has been delayed.

Entrepreneur Julian Dunkerton snapped up The Crown in Minchinhampton in September 2018 and is set to add it to his Lucky Onion group of hotels, restaurants and pubs.

Works to transform the 300-year-old hostelry, which closed in 2012, are now well underway.

In May, the SNJ reported that the pub was expected to relaunch in July or August, but that date has now been put back until October.

A spokeswoman for the Lucky Onion Group said: "We have been working on The Crown through 2019 to bring the property back to it’s former glory, but the work has been a little more complex than we first thought.

"In order to make sure all the works are done to the highest standard we have unfortunately had to delay.

"We will open with a series of pre-opening evenings which are planned for a limited number of locals before the full ‘Go-Live’.

"That said we are extremely excited about this opening and are looking forward to establishing The Crown as a hub for the local Minchinhampton community."

The revamp is being carried out by Cheltenham based building firm Dowdeswell Estates.

In a recent Tweet, the firm hinted that there was a 'secret garden' surprise in store at the Crown.

Chris Gage of Dowdeswell Estates explained: "The Tweet referencing the Secret Garden was due to the fact we’d found an old sign when refurbing that advertised a “secret garden”.

"It was obviously the rear outside space that couldn’t be seen from either of the streets the pub is on.

"I can confirm that the Dowdeswell Estates Design team is currently designing the landscaping package for the garden which will be very much in the vein of what we accomplished on the rear terrace at “The House” at 131."

The House at No.131, another establishment in the Lucky Onion Group, is an eight bedroomed Georgian townhouse in Cheltenham, located next to No.131, a boutique hotel and restaurant.

Other establishments in the Lucky Onion Group include No. 131, No. 38 The Park, The Tavern and Gin & Juice in Cheltenham, and The Wild Duck near Cirencester and The Wheatsheaf Inn, Northleach.